Shakespeare’s 17th century masterpiece about the “Melancholy Dane” was given one of its best screen treatments by Soviet director Grigori Kozintsev. Kozintsev’s Elsinore was a real castle in Estonia, utilized metaphorically as the “stone prison” of the mind wherein Hamlet must confine himself in order to avenge his father’s death. Hamlet himself is portrayed (by Innokenti Smoktunovsky) as the sole sensitive intellectual in a world made up of debauchers and revellers. Several of Kozintsev directorial choices seem deliberately calculated to inflame the purists: Hamlet’s delivers his “To be or not to be” soliloquy with his back to the camera, allowing the audience to fill in its own interpretations.

“The Iron Orchard” is the story of Jim McNeely, a young man thrust into the vibrant and brutal West Texas oilfields in 1939, who works his way through the ranks to ultimately become a formidable wildcatter.

Theresa, a haunted young woman spiraling in the wake of profound loss, is torn between her fractured emotional state and the reality-altering effects of a potent cannabinoid drug.

Far away from the civilized world, in the deep isolation of the lonely backwoods, Carl Henry Jessup spends his days in twisted contemplation and hazy reverie of the good old days. His contempt for outsiders keeps him close to his hillbilly family home. Carrying on the family business, Carl keeps an eye out for Grade A meat.

Born in the early 20th century, herbalist Jan Mikolasek became rich and famous after curing countless diseases with unorthodox means. A true emblem of Czechoslovakia before World War II, the healer became even more appreciated during the Nazi occupation and the communist regime. Each regime appreciates his skill and protects him. But how much will it cost him to maintain his status in a new political change?

A Marine war veteran faces mental and emotional challenges when he tries to reintegrate back into civilian life.

As a parting shot, fired reporter Ann Mitchell prints a fake letter from unemployed “John Doe,” who threatens suicide in protest of social ills. The paper is forced to rehire Ann and hires John Willoughby to impersonate “Doe.” Ann and her bosses cynically milk the story for all it’s worth, until the made-up “John Doe” philosophy starts a whole political movement.

A young man in Delhi tries to break free from his controlling brothers.

In this very black comedy about ill-suited neighbors united by marriage, Niki is a former colonel in the Romanian army whose daughter is married to the son of Flo, an aging Bohemian who is full of schemes for the “new” Romania. As the young couple prepares to emigrate to the U.S., Niki is obliged to interact with Flo, whom he finds totally unbearable.

A child bride grows up to be an enigmatic woman presiding over her household, harboring a painful past as supernatural murders of men plague her village.

Irina is dying. A predator who stalks streets at night looking for blood, she has lived over a century; tormented by memory, living in a run-down motel by the sea, Irina has reached the end. Her perceptions skewed, her body and mind revolting against themselves, she waits for an exit. Her private hell is echoed by the motel manager, driven by an obsession to protect Irina and keep her secrets safe, and a broken prostitute whose desperate plight may be worse than Irina’s. It’s the tale of three people living a life on the fringe, trapped in world of literal and figurative decay.

“Botoks” is intended to be a record of the authentic history of strong, determined and expressive physicians who struggle with life’s decisions and problems: discrimination, maternity pressures, the pursuit of youth, the fight for the right to free choice and own views.